Severe Weather

Attorneys Ask For Transfer Of Teen Slaying Suspect

Defense attorneys for the teen accused of killing his stepbrother asked a judge for a transfer from the Jefferson County Youth Center on Tuesday.

Joshua Young, 16, is being charged as an adult with the murder of Trey Zwicker,14.

Young's father told police his son beat Trey to death with a baseball bat because he "hated him so much."

Emotional Outburst Outside Courtroom

The courtroom confrontation Tuesday was quite civil, but the aftermath was less so.

"These boys were raised together, their parents were raised together. I just don't understand it. And I don't think that he should have the right to go to school or anything else because Trey got cheated out of it. So why should he be able to do the things that Trey cannot do?" said Zwicker's grandmother Rodney Gunter.

Defense attorney Pete Schuler called a witness from the Cabinet of Health and Family Services who has spent a lot of time with Young as he bounced around foster homes.

Family services worker Allison Miller recommended Young be moved to Sunrise Spring Meadow in Bullitt County, a locked facility where Young can complete his education and receive mental health counseling.

"We have not had any behavioral problems with Josh through the entirety of the case," said Miller.

The family services worker said it could work because Young has never shown violent tendencies -- something the victim's father disagreed with.

"I still don't know enough about it to know if the protections are adequate to keep him from getting out, to keep him from assaulting others," said Brown.

"We're not talking about a whole lifetime of violence. We're talking about one time that matters to me,? Trey?s father, Terry Zwicker, said.

Zwicker isn't totally against a change in Young's location.

?As long as he isn't in the public, they prove him guilty, then that's when I'll say, 'Rot in hell,'" Zwicker said.

Zwicker said he just wants an eye for an eye.

"Trey received a judgment on May 11. He's got to serve it out. He's got to accept his responsibility, so does the people involved in this situation. They should pay in the same way, locked in a box for the rest of their life,? Zwicker said.

Judge Barry Willett said he will do more research on the Bullitt County facility before making a decision.

During Miller's testimony, she mentioned a foster family who said they would take Young back with open arms despite his murder charge. Miller said the foster family has two biological children.

Miller said Young wouldn't be allowed to do anything outside the facility if he went to Bullitt County.

Diplomats and negotiators kept working Tuesday as a deadline approached to reach a deal on a framework agreement on Iran's nuclear program, but a U.S. State Department official said the discussion may continue after the cutoff.